SAN ANTONIO (AP) — Texas’ top conservative stars are getting first-hand looks at a surge of unaccompanied children caught crossing the border with Mexico illegally.
Tea party-backed U.S. Sen. Ted Cruz and Attorney General and Republican gubernatorial hopeful Greg Abbott will tour facilities housing unaccompanied minors Monday at San Antonio’s Lackland Air Force Base.
Later, Gov. Rick Perry visits a federal facility for unaccompanied minors in the border town of Weslaco. He will also be briefed by federal officials and state officials there.
Perry has authorized spending an extra $1.3 million a week in border security amid what he calls a “humanitarian crisis.”
Thousands of unaccompanied minors, mostly from Central America, have poured into the U.S. illegally in recent months, overwhelming the federal government.
Perry has urged “decisive action” from President Barack Obama.